Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-08-27
CITY AND DISTRICT.


WASHINGTON, ID. C., August %, 1887.
To the Editor Of THE EVENING STAR:
Not long since communication appeared IN one
Oh our papers, possibly your excellent Journal
cTlticiSing the practice, particularly upon Mon
oays al the Police Court, in trying all the disor-
Gerry District cases first and keeping people watt
Ing all day to act as witnesses upon criminal ones
Here Is case In point: Ny wife hired two little
boys 70 take the market basket home saturday
from the Eastern market, a distance OF about four
L4OcAa- These boys had come almost daily 10 my
mouse during the wtnter-half-fcd half-clad-ask-
lag for bread. and having old sack TO put IL In.
They had, also, often taken the ashes away and
81 II nJtle JOBS, as we pitied them. They were Oh
fected 10 Keep straight On the same street and the
same walk 10 the next TO the last house IL may
be that they were unable 10 ind II, yet knowing
the above they must have been OF very inferior
Intelligence IL unable 20 remember. They did not
appear with 1t, and In due time were seen away
out on the common, each with a tin dish or pail
on MS head When / appeared one ran away,
leaving IN the dirty Old pail the lemons, onions,
eggs. and butter and parsley The other Lad when
caught had tin pln Iull of beef, too soiled to be
nj 10 use In due time lie led us 10 the SIDE OF
building on sth and streets, where, In the pas
kSt. were the rest OF the vegetables, S4Ve tne
melon and pickles, which were gone. Wen,
my nrst impulse was TO talk 10 him and iet
him go. as he was young aud TOO ignorant 10 be
hardly responsible: but after thinking OF bis hard
Nt Last winter, and learning from my neignDDrs
lhat ne had pulled a pafling here, taken hhiie
there; from the Waterman that be mad graspeo
.''LceHt piece from boy in the park ana from the
boys That he lived upon the commons, ana MS
1lotnfT NOHidn I own MIN, AL Oh WHICH Il w Ho1
Know JoDe true but have no reason TO dlSDeleVe,
concluded THAT II was better for such boys II they
could be placed in reform SHOOT, where lney could
learn 70 read and work trade, DE wen ieu tha
clothed, as they should be at such institutions
So upon the advice OF all who knew OF the circunl-
stances, turned him over 10 the police, with a
pure motive for the boys own good, and also the
DepeflJ OF the community In this section or the
city (Particularly their door-beiis}. spoke 10
the police OF niy sole motive, as | did not have
any resentment toward one whose lot was already
too hard. asked if they were put in cells with
grown and hard eases, and was answered they were
not, andI said 'ie easy on him here AT station
had been told that 1 would have TO appear
against him for petit larceny, and summons vas
issued fOr me to appear at $50 O'Clock Monday at
tine Police Court and there stay until the case was
disposed Of. Then they summoned my wife also.
JeNyIdined 10 the policeman that 1t was neces-
S,ry for me to be at the Department.; that the
chief of my bureau was away, and was expected
To be on hand; that / did not want To lose the
among q rough crowd. He said he would
explain it To the district attorney and see
II NJ could get 1t called at once In Tue taf
morning and le. me right OF, and tIat
Ivy vie could sit in the district attorneys room.
Well, he tried TO do as he said, and I've no com
plant to make against the genttenaniy PONCE
man who spoke 10 the attorney : aide, who TOOK
part of the Information and made out the tnior-
giafioa The policeman and both explained IL to
THIS man. and ne explained that the District cases
came first. but would try TO have this case called
at once upon their taking up the criminal cases
The assistant district attorney listened nut q
minute, and Understood him 10 promise 10 get 1t
Off soon as possible when bis Cases were taken
up wen. all the forenoon vi
case after case was taken up OF persons Tor pro-
1lnity or bOsteIouSne-S, where only the police
officer appeared against them, While the cases
where WITNESSES were To appear, many, probably
all of them. laW-and-Order citizens and lovers or
the salie VINO had other business 10 attend To, sat
and waited. / asked the assistant district at
tuFGey. after they had taken up the forgery
raSe, when the one i was on would De called
He said ne didn't know anything about it.
Well, ii was called. the last one, AT or after pm,
End then the boy failed 10 appear as he had 0een
let out on 50 collateral and forfeited 1t. Why
couldn't / have been told lie Was out on
bail? Who let him out? / should have known IL
little Use To wait longer. Why summon witness
20 appear at $50 when the class OF cases he
Is ON don't come up I'LL , p ia. Why was
not the case called early instead OF last?
The boy is OUt-thatS all right. was sorry Ia
turned aim over TO the police when learned That
saturday nights prisoners get nothing 10 eat I'LL
Monday morning or later except "hydFant waller
GaeS> friends bring IL 10 them. My motives were
UGgE: 10 De-. and j don't say yours Is not, as
know ;otutu- about il, they are tie ptce Tor
these boys who are running Wild, learning vice.
aEd suffering from pOvertys cold embrace.
God plty these waits and snatch them into
orphan dsy iumS or other Places where they can be
work aud make good citizen OF them. Ii the legal
steps won't accomplish It let organized charity.
But I've had one day In police court, anu may
IL be the last: and I've heard many citizens say
since that there IL no inducement for business
Inen, for honest men, for lovers OF law and order,
Tor those 40 would snatch the uncarPd for boys
now schOoied In primary lessons OF v1ce-no induce
lnOritie-. because under the present system they
Are taken from business. and, as witnesses, pun
shed almost as bad a. the criminal
". II. s. WOOD.